Hilde Lotz-Bauer
Tradition comes alive in Scanno
Estate ’34 (Summer ’34)
By Corinna Lotz
On 23 August, the mountain town of Scanno was transformed. Already a legendary place, its mysteries deepened, as a crowd gathered beneath the looming stone facades in Ju Vallone (The Valley), an ancient square, magically lit. They had come for the premiere of a play by Fabiana Pesce, directed by Michela Nicolai.
Estate ’34 (Summer ’34), brought to life by actors of the Roman theatre company Lo Stormo, unfolded the lives and loves of three young women – years when the rhythms of tradition still ruled daily life, and the outside world seemed very far away. Capturing them with her camera was Hilde Lotz-Bauer, a German photographer who, almost a century ago, left an indelible mark on Scanno through her lens.
The day had already begun in a spirit of remembrance. Lotz-Bauer’s daughter, Corinna, walked the town’s labyrinth of narrow streets in the company of two local women, Maria Rosaria Colaneri & Berenice Carfagnini, all dressed in the elaborate traditional costume. Their heavy pleated skirts swayed gently as they walked, heads held high, soon to be encircled by a group of young girls.
Scanno’s women, in their sumptuous outfits, have long fascinated artists and outsiders. In 1929, MC Escher immortalised them in his etching Street Scene. Only a few years later, Hilde Lotz-Bauer explored the same streets, Leica in hand, capturing the quiet dignity of the town and its people. Her photographs, rich in intimacy and detail, came some two decades before Scanno drew the attention of masters such as Henri Cartier-Bresson, Mario Giacomelli, and Gianni Berengo Gardin.
Today the costume is only worn on a daily basis by one Scanno lady, 94-year-old Margherita Ciarletta. Two other ladies sadly died earlier this year. Maria Pia Silla, president of the Scanno Costume Foundation (FASTI) is leading a campaign for UNESCO recognition of the dress as Intangible Cultural Heritage.
That evening as voices rose and shadows danced across the stone walls of Ju Vallone, Estate ’34 seemed to braid these histories together – the lives of Scanno’s women, the gaze of the artists who sought them, and the fragile thread of tradition that still binds past and present.
The play formed part of Dreams of the Sagittario, a summer festival produced by Maria Fiorella Rotolo and sponsored by the Comune di Scanno, which ran 11 July to 30 August 2025.
30 August 2025
Cast of Estate '34
Camilla Paoletti plays Adalgisa, Giacinta Pittaluga plays Palmira, Diletta Ronga plays Lia and Fabiana Pesce plays Hilde.
The script is by Fabiana Pesce.
Directed by Michela Nicolai.
Technical supervision by Matteo Esposito.
Lo Stormo theatre company.
- Hilde re-visits Scanno in 2025
- La Foce: Piece teatrale: "Le fotographie di Hilde Lotz-Bauer"